Truce
by RavenAngelxX
Summary: Seto hates Joey, but they are working together to defeat an evil video game that came to life and they fall in love... Better than it sounds; I just fail at summaries. So yeah... R&R please.
1. Let the Games Begin

**_Okay, okay this is my first actual fanfic of any kind besides poetry as I'm not good with other people's characters. I tried to make them as in character as possible, so I apologize if I failed. All of their names will be the same as the 4Kids version except for Anzu because Tea reminds me too much of tea. I'm just trying this out for now, so yeah... This is the first chapter and I'd like to know what you all think. If it sucks, feel free to say so but please be nice. I'm new to this._**

**_Rated T because I seriously don't know where I'm going with this._**

**_I warn you now, this is yaoi/shonen ai/slash/whatever... Puppyshipping... Seto and Joey... Yeah. If you don't like it, don't read or comment. Kthx!_**

**_The disclaimer states the obvious... that I own nothing in here aside from the plot. Although I wish I owned the characters because they have fluffy hair. X3_**

Chapter One: Let the Games Begin

Joey Wheeler stopped walking and gazed down the pitch black alleyway. "Hey, Yugi, I think I'm gonna take the short cut to my house if that's okay with you," he muttered in his Brooklyn, New York accent, secretly hoping someone would offer to come with him.

"Oh, okay, Joey. We'll see you tomorrow at school then."

"Uh... yeah," he laughed nervously.

"Bye, Joey!" Anzu called over her shoulder as the three of them continued forward.

"Bye..." the blond muttered inaudibly as he headed into the blackness and away from the city.

It was only about five in the evening, but it seemed like it was night time down these side roads all the time. There were no streetlights, and the buildings were much too high up to really allow any light to shine down. Joey whirled around at the sound of a soft padding behind him. Was he being followed? Suddenly, he found himself wishing he hadn't came down here, or that he had at least dragged Tristan with him.

But it was too late to turn back now!

The teen stopped at what appeared to be an intersection. He knew he was supposed to turn, but which way? Had he really forgotten already? Figuring a left turn would take him back out to the main road, Joey took a right.

After walking for about half of a mile, he came to another turn where he proceeded to take a left, nearly running into – and tripping over – a metal trash can. He guided around it, somehow managing to maintain his balance, and continued down the alley. Was home really this far away?

Turning once more, the boy finally stopped. This definitely wasn't the way home! But just as he turned to go back, someone – three someones actually – stood in his way. When he turned back around, there were three more creepy guys in hooded cloaks.

"Hey, guys, sorry to invade your... little place here, but I really need to get home, so if you'll just let me pass, that'd be really great." He flashed them an uncomfortable smile.

Ignoring his words, the creepy guys advanced until they were blocking all of the exits.

"What do you want?" he demanded, taking a defensive stance to show that he was ready to fight them if that was what they wanted.

The men ignored him, seeing him as no threat, and began to chant strange mysterious words that Joey couldn't manage to understand any of. The ground beneath them began to glow in a blue circular shape, and the blond kid felt himself rising up from the ground. At this point he saw a perfect opportunity to make a crappy joke in his discomfort.

"Hey! Whoa, who turned the gravity off?"

Not seeing his statement as the least bit comical apparently, the black cloaked guys continued with their Satanic chanting.

Just then, someone shot into the alley from somewhere else. He leaped up, taking off from the ground until he was standing between Joey and the hooded spectacles and glanced back over his shoulder.

"Run, Wheeler."

"Kaiba?"

"I said run, damn it! Move!"

Not sure what to think of the scene that was laid out before him, Joey just stood there, staring at the back of Seto's head in confusion. They always fought, so why would he be trying to help him?

"I challenge you to a duel!" the brunette called out to the black robes, flipping out a strange looking version of a duel disk and shuffling his deck of equally as strange looking cards.

The men chuckled, seeing this boy as only an obstacle to getting what they wanted. Seto glanced over his shoulder again.

"What are you? A dumb animal? If I said run, that means run! Go!" the young CEO practically screamed. He was more used to people doing what he said. If Seto said 'jump', everyone else said 'how high?'

Everyone else except Joey that is. Instead, that idiot was still standing there in awe. "But I'll fall!"

"And? We're like a foot above the ground. I'm pretty sure you can make it, Dog."

His eyes narrowed, but he didn't get a chance to think of a comeback because Seto finally gave up on trying to yell at him. instead, he turned around and shoved him backwards so that he fell from the floating circle. A moment later, the said object and the people in it had vanished.

Without another moment's hesitation, Joey leaped to his feet and fled as far away as possible until he came back out on the main road. He wasn't sure whether he should get help or if he should just go home and pretend it was a dream that had never happened.

But he couldn't. instead he ran home and instantly made a phone call.

"Yuug? It's me, Joey. Call me back as soon as you get this message!"

"Tristan! I have something really important to tell you guys. Call me back soon, okay?"

Anzu was the only one that was home. "Hey, Anzu! I'm so glad you're home. Do you know where Yugi and Tristan are?"

The girl shook her head. "No, why would I? I was just making myself something to eat."

"Damn. Well, I guess you'll do then."

"Gee, thanks."

After a long explanation, the two of them had hunted down Yugi and Tristan and returned to the place where Joey had formerly been just in time to see Seto Kaiba walking away. Like an idiot, Joey ran after him.

"Hey! Hey Kaiba!"

The boy stopped in his tracks, looking back over his shoulder. "What do you want, Wheeler?"

Joey slowed to a stop as he caught up to Seto. "You saved me. How come?"

The other turned now, crossing his arms in his usual stance. "I didn't _save_ anyone. We just happened to be in the same place at the same time, that's all."

"Uh huh," Joey's eyes narrowed, and he flashed the taller boy a smirk. "You so saved me."

"I did not, you stupid mutt. Good bye, Losers. I'll you at school." That said, Seto Kaiba turned on his heel and walked out of the dark alley and back into civilization, Joey staring after him in slightly irritated yet appreciative amusement.

School the next day wasn't the same at all. Every single student was talking about the mysterious bright blue light that had been spotted coming from the alleyway. It was on the news and everything, but no one was sure what it was all about.

No one except for Seto Kaiba who was silently sitting alone like some random emo kid as he nibbled absentmindedly at his lunch. Hesitantly, Joey made his way over and sat down.

"Hey there!"

The brunette lifted his head, eying the other in silence. He raised an eyebrow. "What do you want, Wheeler?"

"Well, I was just sorta wondering if..."

"Are you asking me out...?"

"No!"

"Then spit it out. I haven't got all day, you know."

"Okay okay, so I want to know what that was."

"What what was?" Kaiba inquired innocently, a mischievous shimmer in his eyes.

"The guys with the hoods! The big floating circle thing!"

"Wheeler, what are you talking about? I think you need to get your head examined."

"What? But everyone's talking about it!"

"No... They're talking about a light, you stupid mutt. Where did you get circles and cloaks from?"

"I..." Realizing that he was wasting his time asking Seto Kaiba, Joey shook his head. "Never mind." He got up from his seat and headed back to his usual table.

"Wheeler!" the other boy called.

The blond turned. "What?"

"My corporation after school. Got it?"

A grin broke out on Joey's face. "I got it."

Kaiba bent his wrist, resting his chin on his hand and crossing his long thin legs under the table in his usual manner. "And don't bring your friends."

"Why not?"

"Do you want me to explain it to you or not?"

"Well, yeah, but..."

"No friends."

"Fine, no friends," the other boy finally agreed, returning to his usual table to tell his friends so that they would know where to look in the case that he never came back.

"Why can't we go with you?" Tristan inquired, rather alarmed.

"I don't know," the blond shrugged.

"If you ask me, it sounds like a set up," Yugi muttered.

"Me too," Anzu agreed.

"Why would it be though? Kaiba has no reason to set me up."

"Are you sure about that, Joey?" the only brunette male in their little group asked.

"Yeah, Tristan. He probably just doesn't want you guys messing up his fancy company or something," Joey teased, waving a hand in a snobby way at his companions and turning his head to stick his nose in the air.

They all laughed.

Once school got out that afternoon, the four friends all split up, Joey heading over towards Kaiba Corp. and Yugi, Anzu, and Tristan towards their homes. They said their good byes, turned away from each other, and walked off.

Joey reached his location first seeing as the building was probably the largest in all of the town and pretty much impossible to miss. He walked up to the door but was stopped by a man in sunglasses wearing a suit.

"What are you doing here, Kid?"

Joey backed away cautiously, a look of shock on his face. "Nothing. I'm just here to see Kaiba. Is he here?"

"No, now go on home before you get in trouble."

"Oh, uh, okay..." Suddenly feeling the presence of someone behind him, Joey turned.

Seto Kaiba stepped around his guest, saying "He's with me, Charles," as he stepped through the opened door.

Reluctantly, Joey followed, and the man – Charles? – held the door opened for him as well.

Once seated comfortably in the dimly lit conference room, Kaiba set down his brief case and opened it. He reached inside and fiddled around until he pulled out something that was wrapped in a cloth.

"Never in public will I admit that I have anything to do with you and your loser friends, but I believe there are some things that you do, in fact, have a right to know."

"What? That you're a fag?" the blond teased.

"And you dressed up in a dog costume."

Joey felt his face flush. "Alright, you win again. What's all this about?"

The brunette didn't answer him, but instead lifted the cloth from the strange object. It was nothing but an ordinary disk.

"This is a video game," he muttered.

The other's eyes narrowed. "Yeah, I'm not stupid, Kaiba. I can see that."

"Shut up, Wheeler. I'm not finished yet!" Seto snapped.

Joey obeyed.

"This is an amusing little game that we have created here at Kaiba Corp. It's a normal virtual reality game with twenty levels to beat plus a few more hidden ones. At first it seemed like a harmless children's toy – I even let my baby brother play with it – but we were wrong. After he positively refused to get off of the game for some unknown reason, I knew there was something wrong. Then, Mokuba was gone. He lost all five of his lives and got lost somewhere in the game. I looked, but I could never find him.

"A few days ago, a strange old man showed up. He told me that he could help me and find my brother, so I agreed. He asked for access to the game as well as my computers for twenty four hours tops. I agreed once again. Before his time was up, he finished what he was doing and brought my little brother back to me. I was so happy that Mokuba was back that I didn't think to make sure the old man hadn't screwed anything up.

"When I finally got around to it, there was a timer on the screen with ten seconds left. I didn't have time to do anything, so I just hoped for the best. Once it hit zero, I thought nothing had happened. I found out the next day that he had released my game into the real world. All of the villains, weapons, programs were real, but no one could see them."

"But I saw them!" Joey interrupted.

"Yes, well, if you would let me finish for once!"

"Sorry."

"Jeez. Anyway, no one _could_ see them, but somehow they got access to the right data technology and now a select few can actually see them while others still can't. They're working on it. But now they are able to physically hurt people, kill them even! And only I know how to defeat them, but I can't do it by myself, so as much as I hate to admit it, I need your help."

"Why? Can't you just delete the game or destroy it or something?"

"Have you even been listening? The game is in the _real world_ now. What do you expect me to do? Destroy the planet?"

"I guess you have a point..."

"Wheeler, you've got to help me."

"Why? It was your mistake."

"Because you're the only other person I've met who can see them."

"And? Just because you haven't met more doesn't mean there aren't more."

"If you're going to be like that about it, then just forget it. I'm _not_ begging: that's the dog's job."

Joey felt his face growing warm again. "Fine. I'll help you, but only to prove that I'm not the dog!"

Seto smirked slightly. "We'll just see about that."

"Yeah, okay, I'm leaving," the blond muttered, turning to leave.

"Fine. But I'd like to see you tomorrow too," Kaiba muttered.

Joey spun around in horror. "_What?_"

The other raised an eyebrow. "Tomorrow. We have to call a truce if we're going to make this work."

"_What?_" the shorter of the two continued to gaze at the other in shock.

"Wheeler, snap out of it! We have to work together to hunt down the programs and defeat them in a duel."

"A duel? Cool! I didn't know computers played card games."

"Well, these do, and I'm telling you now, Mutt. If you screw up, and they win, I'm going to wring your neck and kill you. These guys aren't easy opponents."

"Then we won't go easy on them!" Joey exclaimed, punching the air.

"Uh huh..." Seto muttered, closing his briefcase. "You're dismissed."


	2. Sleepless Nights

**_Okay, so I don't really like the title I gave this chapter, but I have to name my chapters something besides numbers, so yeah... It's one of my quirks._**

**_Same rating remains... T because I don't know where this is going._**

**_Warnings are still the same: Yaoi/shonen ai/puppyshipping/gayness... Whatever you want to call it. If you have a problem with it, then I don't even know why you're reading this._**

**_Disclaimer as usual states that I own nothing although I wish I did... On my facebook profile I'm married to Seto, but that's as close as I've gotten to owning anything. X3_**

**_Anyway, read on, enjoy. Here's chapter two... And I apologize if they seem more in character with their abridged counterparts as I've been watching the abridged series recently._**

Chapter Two: Sleepless Nights

Joey walked along next to Yugi who was nibbling on a rice ball in silence while Tristan and Anzu tagged along rather far behind.

"So what did Kaiba want you for?" the small duelist inquired as he finished his breakfast.

"Huh?"

"Yesterday, I mean."

"Oh, that. He just wanted me to help him out with something."

"Why you?"

Joey gave his friend an irritated look. "Why _not_ me? I'm just as good of a duelist as you."

"Whoa, calm down, Joey!" Yugi smiled awkwardly, waving his friend's words away. "I didn't mean it like that. I was just asking why he would need you instead of, like, Mokuba or someone. After all, they _are _brothers."

The blond looked down. "You're right, Yuug, but... Well, you wouldn't understand."

"Understand what?" Tristan asked, sneaking up behind them.

"Your special bond with Kaiba?" Anzu teased.

"Lay off, okay? You guys can get really annoying sometimes."

"See? He's already rubbing off on you," the girl swooned.

Joey rolled his eyes. "Why do you keep insisting that we're in love with each other?"

"Because you guys make such a cute couple!" she squealed.

"I like girls, okay?"

"Do you like me then?"

"No. But you're not a girl, you're just Anzu."

Her eyes narrowed, and she pushed past him, not saying another word.

Joey gazed after her absentmindedly. He _did _like girls, right? When he thought about it, he had never really dated anyone before aside from the time he almost scored with Mai, but that had really been just a fling sort of... Hadn't it?

_Yes_, he finally decided, it had.

***

When school was out once again, Joey headed straight for Kaiba Corp. where he once again ran into Charles the Doorman. Recognizing him at once, the man in the suit opened the door and allowed him through.

"The CEO will be with you shortly."

"Eh... Thanks..." the blond muttered and fled to the conference room once again.

Not long after, the door opened, and the familiar form of Seto Kaiba entered the room with one hand stuffed in his jacket pocket and the other carrying his silver briefcase. He wordlessly closed the entrance door and seated himself at the head of the table and once again proceeded to open his briefcase. He took out a bunch of things that looked like they were way too large to all fit into one case and laid them out on the table before him.

"What's all this?" Joey inquired.

"These are replicas of the gadgets used by people playing the game," the dark-haired boy responded. "We're going to need to use these if we expect to find any of the programs."

"Are you sure they'll work?"

"My corporation made all of the items that you see here. If they didn't work, somebody would have died by now."

"That's creepy."

The other rolled his eyes and picked up what appeared to be a watch of some sort. "This is simply a radar. It has no other cool functions aside from telling time."

"So are we going to be like spies or something?" Joey asked eagerly.

Seto looked up at him, raising an eyebrow. "No. We're going to finish this thing and then pretend it never happened."

"Oh..."

"Now, this is a power level... thing."

"Looks like sunglasses to me..."

"Once again, why do you always interrupt me, Wheeler?"

"Sorry." The blond looked down.

"It's fine. As I was saying, yes, these were once sunglasses, but they've been altered. In the game, you would generally have all this stuff in the helmet, but we aren't playing the game, so we had to improvise.

Each of the programs has a certain level between one and one hundred. One is the lowest and weakest, one hundred is highest and most dangerous, obviously. All of them can be defeated in the same way, which is how we get into this."

He gestured towards a strange looking version of a duel disk, the same version, in fact, that Joey had seen him using earlier. It was completely black, looking like it was made up of some sort of light metal, but the slots were all a deep purple color. There were strange hieroglyphic looking blue designs all over it that seemed to almost glow in the dim light of the room that they were in.

"Obviously, that's a duel disk. The main difference is that these are the cards," Seto muttered, picking up a deck of weird looking cards with more hieroglyphic monsters on them in a magenta color on a black background. The backs of the cards looked just like regular ones except that they were blue instead of the nasty orangey brown color of the real Duel Monsters cards. "They all work exactly like Duel Monsters."

"Wow," Joey muttered, "Are you sure this is going to work?" He was beginning to regret this more and more.

"It has to. It's our only chance," the other sighed, pushing all of the items away from himself and taking out one more thing. "This is just like a sort of thing to enable you to fly, but don't go flying around town on it and scaring old ladies."

"How am I supposed to even stand on that tiny thing? It looks like a Coke cap."

"You can't stand on it, you moron. Press on it and it will grow into a weird circular thing that you can fly on. I don't even know why it would be necessary, but it was Mokuba's idea. Personally, I'd just rather walk, but I figured you might like it."

"Hell yeah!"

The brunette nodded. "You get one of each item that's laid out here before you, but aside from that, don't touch anything. Don't even _think_ about touching anything, get it?"

"Got it."

"Good."

***

Joey lay awake in his warm bed that night, gazing blankly at the ceiling. So far this whole program hunting thing hadn't seemed so bad, but something told him it was about to get worse. Tomorrow was Friday, the start of the weekend, and he probably wouldn't get any time with his friends if he was going to spend the whole weekend chasing around computer generated programs and defeating them at a card game. On top of that, he had to spend his free time with Seto Kaiba, the asshole millionaire kid who owned his own corporation and loved the attention he got for it. This was the same kid that had always insulted Joey and even treated him like a worthless mutt just because he wasn't as great of a duelist as the rich snob. The insults and nicknames still hadn't ceased.

The blond rolled over to face his alarm clock, seeing that he only had three hours left to sleep as depicted by the brilliant red numbers. He closed his eyes tightly, trying to will himself to sleep, but sleep refused to come. He rolled over the other way and then onto his stomach, but nothing seemed to help him to sleep, so Joey eventually just got up and turned on the TV to watch until he finally fell asleep.

***

When the morning finally sneaked around, Joey was too tired to even hear his alarm clock go off, so Serenity had to come in the room and wake him up. He jumped to his feet, dressed as quickly as possible, and fled into the kitchen, packing his lunch and wolfing down his breakfast as fast as he possibly could as well as at the exact same time. He said a quick good bye to his family after that and rushed out the door, meeting up with his friends as usual.

"What took you so long, Joey?" Yugi inquired.

"Sorry, Yuug, I guess I just had a rough night last night."

"With Kaiba?" Anzu teased in a singsong voice.

"Would you just drop it? We're not dating. I'm not gay, okay?"

"Sure."

Tristan slipped an arm around his friend's shoulders and grinned. "I believe you, Joey."

"Thanks, Tristan," the blond responded, glancing at Anzu. "See? Why can't you be more like him?"

"Because I'm a girl. Oh wait, no I'm not. I'm 'Just Anzu', remember?"

"I'm sorry, alright? You're definitely a girl. I'm just not attracted to you like that."

"Are you attracted to Seto? After all, I would be if he wasn't such a jerk. He's rich."

Joey groaned. Would he have to bear this torture all day long? "Exactly. He's a jerk, hence why I wouldn't be attracted to him even if I _was_ gay."

"So are you gay?"

"No!"

***

By lunch time, Anzu seemed to have completely forgotten about her jokes and was, instead, watching Yugi and some random kid duel. Yugi's personal favorite, his Dark Magician, was in play, and the other kid had his Silverfang in play. It didn't take long for Joey to grow bored of watching them duel, and he got to his feet. He returned to a sitting position when he reached Seto's table.

The brown-haired boy put down his book and glanced up at Joey. "What?"

"Nothing. I got bored over there."

"And you honestly think that just because we're working together, you're allowed to come over here and talk to me? I was at a rather interesting chapter in my book."

"I'm sorry. Hey, what are you reading anyway?"

"_Kaiba Corp.'s Manual Guide to Video Game and Computer Technology._"

"Someone's got a huge ego," Joey teased.

"Look who's talking, Dog Boy."

"Okay, seriously? That was a long time ago, Kaiba. Do you really have to keep reminding me?"

The other boy smirked. "Yes."

The blond let out an exasperated sigh. "Fine. So what are we doing today anyway?"

"Must you always associate you and me with we? _We_ have nothing to do with each other."

"Oh yeah, right. We were just thrown together by the winds of fate."

"That sounds better. And I'm not your friend; I'm your master."

Joey ground his teeth together, trying to suppress his rising anger. "Forget it. I'm not going to waste my time talking to you if you're going to be like this."

"Why not? You've already wasted five minutes of mine," the other replied, picking up his manual again.

"Jerk..." the blond boy muttered under his breath, turning and heading back to his usual table. He expected Anzu to make some gay remark, but she didn't. She probably saw the anger on his face and decided it would be best not to start with the teasing.

***

Once school got out, the four friends stood in their usual spot saying a final good bye for the time being. Yugi turned to Joey.

"So do you think you'll be able to come over this weekend, Joey?"

"Eh... Sorry, Yuug, but it's just not a sure thing right now."

"He's got to spend time with his new boyfriend, remember?" Anzu chimed in.

"Oh... Well, if you change your mind, you know where I'm at."

The blond nodded, shooting the girl a pissed off glare. "And he's not my boyfriend."

"Yeah, plus you're overkilling the joke," Tristan added. "It's not even funny anymore."

"Sorry," Anzu finally apologized.

"Whatever. I've got to go, you guys."

"Are you sure about that?" the brunette girl inquired.

"What do you mean?" Joey asked, puzzled.

"Look!" Yugi exclaimed, gesturing towards something past his friend.

The blond turned at the sound of a car approaching. It was Seto Kaiba's limousine, and it came to a stop right there as the window rolled down to reveal the empty expression of the rider.

"Get in," the boy ordered.

"No way," the other muttered. "I'm not getting in that car with you."

"Fine, but it's a rather long walk."

"Long walk? Where are we going?"

"Get in, and I'll tell you."

"You shouldn't get in a car with strangers, Joey," Tristan warned.

"He's not a stranger. He's just a snobby rich kid."

"I don't know if it's safe to get in a car with those either."

"Give it a rest you guys," Joey sighed as the chauffeur came around to open the door for him. The boy slid inside, the door closing behind him, and a moment later, the car jolted forward. He turned to his partner. "Now will you tell me what's going on?"

"I'm kidnapping you," was Kaiba's vague response. The brunette continued to stare emptily forward.

"I knew it!" the lighter haired boy exclaimed.

"Chill out, I'm not really going to waste my time kidnapping _you_."

"And just why not? I'm just as valuable as anyone else."

"We're going somewhere."

"Where? Will we be back?"

"Duh. I have a little brother to look after. Of course we're coming back."

"So where are we going?"

"Do you really have to ask so many questions? You'll see in a few hours."

"Hours?" Joey cried out.

"Yes, hours. So make yourself comfortable."

The other groaned, dropping his head of fluffy blond hair to the tinted window. It was going to be a _long_ afternoon.

***

About halfway through the ride, Joey had dozed off and somehow managed to stay asleep even with all of the bumping around. It was about that point that Seto had put his book down and leaned back in the seat himself.

He wasn't sure why he was so tired, for he had been sleeping rather well as of late; but his eyelids kept trying to fall. He glanced at the sleeping boy next to him. Perhaps it was Joey's fault. Maybe his sleeping was making the other sleepy as well.

_...Is that even possible?_

Just then, the car went over a rather large bump, and the blond slid down the seat, his head ending up on the taller boy's shoulder. Seto felt his face flush, and for a moment, he thought about waking up the other passenger or shoving him off or flinging him into the window on his own side or something. But he decided against it. Both of them were going to need to be as well-rested as was possible for this challenge. Instead, the brunette laid his head back, trying his hardest not to ruin his posture, and finally allowed his blue eyes to close. The ride would be over in no time at all this way.

***

When Joey opened his eyes again and looked around, he felt a light pressure on his head and glanced up. Seto Kaiba was just as fast asleep as the other had been only moments before, causing the blond to wonder how they had each ended up as each other's pillows. Cautiously, he lifted his head.

The other boy stirred at the slight movement and glanced at his companion, their eyes silently trading information. When they had came to a mutual understanding, the brunette immediately turned away to gaze out the window with bright red cheeks.

"I won't tell if you won't..." Joey muttered awkwardly.

"The thought didn't even cross my mind, Wheeler."

**_Once more, this is mostly just an experiment. I'm just looking for some feedback. What do you people think? R&R plz. Kthx!_**


	3. Search

_**Ehh... Well, here's chapter 3... I probably won't be able to update for a rather long time as we just started a new semester at school and the classes I'm in provide hardly any time to do much else. I'll finish and post chapter four as soon as I can though. It's almost halfway done right now. Can't wait till spring break!**_

_**Um... Rating is still T... I don't know why I keep saying that...**_

_**Warnings are still the same: gayness, puppyshipping, yaoi, shonen ai, slash. I'll probably add some thiefshipping later on as a request by a friend of mine plus I just think it's cute.**_

**_Ehh... Disclaimer, I own nothing... Aside from a bunch of pictures._**

Chapter Three: Search

Not long after the incident had taken place, the limo came to a stop in what appeared to be the middle of nowhere with a bunch of old and rotting buildings, and the chauffeur opened the door for the two of them to slide out. The instant Seto was free of his confines, he stretched. Joey, on the other hand, was standing awkwardly next to the limo with his hands stuffed into his pocket and looking around.

"This place is creepy..." he muttered. "Why would there be a bunch of computer programs here?"

"There aren't," the other boy responded, gesturing towards a subway system. "Most of them are underground."

"In the subway? You've got to be kidding me."

"I wish I was. It's dark down there, and my corporation didn't exactly create night vision goggles."

"Great, so how are we going to find them?"

"You'll see. Just be ready to duel." He then turned back to the chauffeur. "Wait here, Demetri. Hopefully this won't take too long."

"Yes, Sir."

***

As Kaiba had said, the subway was dark. As a matter of fact, it was pitch black. Joey had been in these stations many times before, but they had always had electric lighting. He turned to the other boy.

"Where are all the lights?"

"There aren't any," Seto responded carelessly, stepping past him and into the darkness. "You're not scared of the dark, are you?"

"No, but I _am _scared of rogue computer programs that could be hiding in it. I think I'm going to need a night light once this whole thing is over."

"Take my hand, Wheeler."

Joey eyed the other boy's hand suspiciously. "Eh... I'm a little scared of physical contact."

"Suit yourself, but if we get separated, and something happens to you, I'm not taking the blame."

Grumbling, the shorter boy took the hand that was being offered to him. "Fine."

Seto smiled proudly and dragged his companion off through the blackness that was once a subway station. "Be careful if you see anyone in here," he warned. "He could be a harmless hobo, but he could also be a program. These guys can take the form of pretty much any living thing."

"Even a cat?"

"Even a cat."

"Well then, I just won't talk to anybody in that case."

"Oh yes you will. How else are you going to challenge them to a duel?"

"How the hell am I even supposed to see them in this darkness?"

"Your eyes will adjust."

***

And his eyes did adjust, granted that it seemed to take forever, he could eventually make out the silhouettes and shapes of the pillars and the posters that were scattered about in the underground sanctuary. There was a soda machine against the wall next to the tracks, but that was all that he could really make out around the place aside from the occasional glimpse of what appeared to be a head or a small animal scuttling across the floor.

Seto continued to drag the smaller boy through the empty space until they came to what appeared to be a crack of light shining from behind a door.

"Are we going in there?" Joey inquired warily. "It looks kind of sinister."

"It's an anime. Of course we're going in there."

"Great," he muttered as the two of them approached the door. Seto reached out his hand and pushed it inwards to reveal the source of the light, which was a random light bulb hanging by a few wires from the ceiling.

"This is odd..." the blond muttered as he and his partner entered the room.

"It is," agreed Seto. "It looks like it was once used as a bathroom or something."

"That's impossible. If it was a bathroom, then where are all of the toilets?"

"I said 'once', you moron."

"Oh... Right."

"Anyway, we have some programs to destroy, but there doesn't seem to be any in here; so if you don't mind, I'd like move on."

"Whatever you say, Kaiba."

Just as the two boys turned around to leave, they were ambushed by a small group of the said programs which they had sought to destroy. Each one had taken a different shape: some looked just like the ones that Joey had witnessed earlier in their black hooded cloaks, while others had taken the forms of animals. Both boys let go of each other's hands and miraculously got out their duel disks, loading their decks.

"What cards did you even put in here?" Joey inquired of the other boy.

"Just duel."

"Right!"

At the exact same time, both of them raised their voices and called out "It's time to duel!"

"Two on two?" one of the programs hissed.

"Excellent," another added.

"At least they play fair," Joey observed as the two figures took their own stances a few yards in front of himself and his partner.

"Unfortunately, there are only two of us, but there are a bunch more of them."

"I guess that takes the fairness out of it then, huh? So what do we do?"

"What else can we do? Just shut up and duel."

"Right," the other boy agreed.

They each gave each other a nod and drew seven cards from their decks.

"So are we dueling as a team or individually?"

The eyes of Seto Kaiba narrowed. "I never work with anyone."

The blond boy smiled sheepishly. "Right. I guess I forgot."

But just then a small smile crept onto Seto's face. "But I think I can make an exception just this once."

The sheepish smile on Joey's face reformed into a warmer one. He gave his partner a nod and announced "I play my..." He paused, realizing that he couldn't read this strange foreign language. "...Whatever this thing is in attack mode and place one card face down to start the duel."

Kaiba rolled his eyes, ignoring the stupid mutt standing next to him. This was going to be a _long_ duel.

***

By the time they had finished dueling three times in a row, both boys were positively exhausted, but there were still more programs. The next duo stepped up to take on their challenge.

"What do we do now, Kaiba?" Joey demanded.

"Right now? Right now we run!"

And after a quick flashback to the not-so-distant past, Joey pushed through the remaining programs and fled as far away as possible, Seto not trailing too far behind. They didn't stop until they got back outside to the limousine. Not even giving the chauffeur a chance to open the doors for them, Seto opened it himself and practically fell into the car, Joey joining him shortly.

"Where to now, Master Kaiba?"

"Just drive, Demetri!"

"Yes, Sir." With that, the car started instantly. The engine rolled over, and the driver sped away.

Joey glanced out the window behind them and sighed with relief. The programs were just making it out of the building. He turned back around, sliding down in the seat and resting his head on the brunette's shoulder.

Seto weakly tried to shrug him off, but it didn't solve much. Instead, he ended up sliding down in the seat as well. He knew it was bad for his perfect posture, but right now, Seto Kaiba could really care less.

"Are there any hotels around here?" the young CEO inquired to no one in particular.

"Yes, Sir. Will you be staying in one tonight, Sir?" Demetri responded.

"It appears we have no other choice."

"Yes, Sir."

"Why is that, Kaiba?" Joey interrupted.

The rich boy turned to the other, giving him a slightly irritated look. "Did you see how many programs we still had left in there? All of those have to be exterminated, completely wiped out!"

"Oh yeah, that."

"Which hotel, Master Kaiba?"

"Whichever is fine. I can pay any price they ask."

"Let me guess," the shorter boy groaned. "I'm sleeping outside?"

"Do what you like. I'm sleeping in a bed either way."

***

Seto Kaiba crawled under the covers of the hotel bed at last, relieved to finally be in a fairly comfortable bed. It wasn't his usual overstuffed mattress from home or his four poster canopy bed, but it would just have to do for tonight. In the morning, the young CEO planned to take himself a nice warm shower before going back out on the prowl.

Just then, his eyes landed on the figure that was curled up on the floor beside his bed. This was Joey, poor, pitiful, pathetic Joey. He was shivering from the cold, and he really didn't look all too comfortable.

Their original intention had been to get separate rooms, but it had turned out that there was only one room left, and both boys had been too tired to go find another hotel. While Demetri had to spend the night on watch duty in the car outside, Seto and Joey had agreed to sleep in the same room as long as they didn't have to be too close to each other.

Looking at the poor whimpering dog now, Kaiba slightly regretted their little agreement. He let out a soft sigh before finally coming to a decision and speaking.

"Mutt."

Joey lifted his head, glaring angrily at the other boy in the darkness.

"You've been a good dog today, so I'll let you sleep in my bed just for tonight."

Though he was still slightly pissed off, poor Joey was cold. It didn't appear that he really had much choice in the matter.

"Really?"

"Yes, now get up here before I change my mind."

Without any further hesitation, the blond headed boy leaped up onto the bed, circled himself three times, and lay down next to Seto.

"Not so close," the brunette muttered. "I might get infected."

The other hmphed and rolled over to face away from his partner.

_Is that just Kaiba's way of showing that he cares or is he just yanking my chain?_ Joey wondered to himself. Either way, he was happy to be sleeping in a warm cozy bed instead of on the cold hardwood floor.

**_Opinions are lovely, R&R, all that stuff. And I've enabled anonymous reviews now, so if you wanna do that you can... Umm oh and also thanks everyone else who read and/or reviewed my last two chapters... I generally reply to reviews but one or two people don't receive PMs, so thank you all very much. It was very appreciated. I'll update as soon as I can. 3_**


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